Coco Gauff believes tennis is way behind other sports when it comes to distribution of prize funds.
The 21-year-old American and other top players signed a letter asking for more prize money from Grand Slam tournaments.
Despite her age, Gauff is one of the leading figures on the WTA tour.
Recently, there have been lots of demands for change in tennis, with the Professional Tennis Players’ Association (PTPA) filing a lawsuit against the ATP and WTA tour.
The players’ prize money is one of the issues cited in the legal action started by the PTPA, which was co-founded by Novak Djokovic five years ago.
This was followed by the top 20 men’s and women’s players sending a letter to the four Grand Slams asking for more prize money, which included Gauff’s signature.
When asked about the letter and why she signed it, the American said: “The economic distribution in tennis is nowhere near that of other sports.
“Only the top players like us can benefit, not those lower down. This doesn’t happen in other sports.
“We are privileged to be at the top of tennis and able to demand changes, which is why we sent the letter and hope to have a meeting soon.
“We are very aware that we are elite athletes and have the privilege of making a lot of money very easily.
“As a female elite athlete, I also see other sports where they do not have as many privileges. We have to thank Billie Jean King for what she did for our sport.”
Gauff has arrived in Spain for the Madrid Open having crashed out of the quarter-finals of the Stuttgart Open, losing 6-4 6-3 to Italy’s Jasmine Paolini.
However, the world no.4 remained positive and said she has arrived in Spain with ‘a lot of confidence’.
“It was a very tough match against Paolini in Stuttgart, but I feel that I have improved a lot since Miami,” said Gauff in a press conference.
“I have always been treated very well in this tournament, but I have gained more experiences than victories.”
Gauff has struggled to find form at the Madrid Open in her previous four appearances.
Last year’s tournament saw the American achieve her best result with a last-16 finish, which she will be hoping to improve on this week.
Guaff has a bye to the second round, so her first match will be against either Ukrainian Dayan Yastremska or British qualifier Fran Jones.
Looking ahead, to reach the quarter finals for the first time in the Spanish capital, Gauff will have to overcome Leylah Fernandez, Beatriz Haddad Maia, Clara Tauson or Belinda Bencic.
